RALEIGH, N.C. — Having suffered through a streak of close losses, Duke avoided that Saturday with a lopsided win.
Matthew Hurt hit six 3-pointers while scoring 24 points as the Blue Devils beat NC State, 69-53, in ACC basketball at PNC Arena.
The Blue Devils (8-8, 6-6), who entered the game with their first losing record since 1999, ended a three-game losing streak. Those three losses had come by a combined total of 10 points.
But against the struggling Wolfpack (8-9, 4-8 ACC), the Blue Devils took control of the game in the first half and led by as many as 20 points before intermission.
Hurt was a major part of that, scoring 11 early points including a basket with 10:54 left that put Duke up 21-10. Though Hurt went to the bench for the rest of the first half after picking up his second foul, his absence didn’t slow the Blue Devils.
When Hurt returned for the second half, he kept on pumping in shots as Duke cruised to the easy win. Hurt hit 8 of 10 shots overall, including 6 of 7 3-pointers, and said he found the rhythm he’d lacked in recent games.
“Against UNC (in a loss on Feb. 6) I was playing slow and shooting the ball slow,” Hurt said. “The whole week I worked on getting it off quicker. My teammates did a good job of finding me, whether it was in transition or pick and pop.”
Hurt impressed Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski by improving in that area even after going through tough, physical practices where the Blue Devils focused on improving their defensive play.
“He was quicker than he’s been for over a month today,” Krzyzewski said. “After a couple really hard defensive practices, he seemed more alive today. You know, like, he was quick. He was quick, and he got his shot off quick. And he had a heck of a game.”
Mark Williams added 13 points and DJ Steward 12 for Duke, which shot 52.2% and made 9 of 18 3-pointers (50%).
NC State turned the ball over 18 times and shot 45.1%. The Wolfpack made just 2 of 10 3-pointers. Shakeel Moore led NC State with 13 points while DJ Funderburk and Jericole Hellems each scored 11 points.
